


Imperial Happiness

by desdemonalore



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man - All Media Types
Genre: Age Difference, Christmas, Denial of Feelings, Flirting, Fluff, Internalized Homophobia, M/M, Precious Peter Parker, peters age isnt specified
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-25
Updated: 2019-12-29
Packaged: 2021-02-26 01:08:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,106
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21954889
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/desdemonalore/pseuds/desdemonalore
Summary: Mr. Stark doesn't know the true meaning of Christmas! That can't be, right?Peter decides to teach Mr. Stark about what Christmas truly means, but along the way he finds himself learning more about himself and his relationship with his mentor than Mr. Stark is about the holiday...
Relationships: Peter Parker/Tony Stark
Comments: 8
Kudos: 27





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Merry Christmas y'all. I just needed to get this out of my system.

"Good morning, Mr. Stark!" Peter greeted as he entered the older's office. He was dressed in one of his many festive sweaters, tucked into three-quarters length coat. Tony would have minded the pure joy from anyone else, but of course his secret crush was able to dress as he pleased. 

"Morning, Peter." 

Peter skipped over, his boots hardly making a thud on the tiles ground. He selected one of Tony's pens and clicked and unclicked it. 

"I'm excited, Mr. Stark," Peter told the man with a grin. One of Tony's favorite things about the younger was his eagerness to tell everyone how he was feeling with little prompting. It made Tony's job much easier. 

"And why would that be?" Tony entertained, although he already knew why Peter was so worked up. Christmas was approaching and the boy, as hyper and happy as they come, was celebrating in it. 

"Tomorrow is Christmas!" He shouted gleefully, tucking the pen back into it's home and clapping his gloved hands. Although Peter acted equally passionate about Halloween, the boy's pure positive outlook on life was always a shock to the older man. 

"I know. Are you sure you don't want to spend tonight with your aunt?" Tony asked for the countless time this month. Spending time with Peter may be his favorite part of the day, but surely Aunt May needed the boy's attention more than he did. He already managed to warm Tony's cynical heart. 

"Of course not. I love it here." He paused. "I baked cookies. I would have brought some in for everyone, but I didn't have enough..." He paused, shaking his head and reached into the coat's pocket. He rummaged through it's contents and gently handed Tony a plastic bag of cookies. 

Tony nodded. "Thank you, sweetheart." 

"Do you got any plans for tomorrow?" Peter questioned, still grinning wildly.

"No, just work. I haven't celebrated Christmas since I was a kid." Tony looked to his computer, typing information into it without looking up. He wouldn't be able to stand the boy's look of sadness.

As he suspected, Peter gasped. "What? Why not?"

The man sighed dejectedly, rolling his shoulders in a shrug and slumping back into his seat. "I'm not religious."

"So? It's not even about Jesus anyway. It's about family and warmth and friendship," he sighed dreamily and pressed his hands to his heart. "And making someone else happy."

"You always make me happy, darling. And no, that's not it. Not even when I was a kid," Tony replied, and Peter's snapped back to him and narrowed.

"How old are you, Mr. Stark? Actually, nevermind." He shook his head and refocused his purpose, choosing his words carefully. "That's the true meaning. Don't you know the true meaning of Christmas? Some people, and big companies, think it's all about gifts and money and capitalism-- but it's not, that's not the true meaning." 

Tony shook his head and sighed, choosing to ignore the boy rather than break his spirit. "You don't believe me? That's crazy." He reached over the desk and grabbed Tony's hand, entwining their fingers. "C'mon. Get up. Field Trip."

"Oh, boy," Tony groaned, rolling his eyes as Peter tugged on his arm.

"I'm gonna teach you the true meaning of Christmas. In business hours." Tony reluctantly stood, knowing that Peter had super strength and probably would see this a reasonable time to abuse that privilege. 

"Where are we going?" Tony began to ask slowly, but Peter was already distracted from the conversation. The boy grabbed Tony's jacket and hurriedly dressed the man in snow-appropriate weather.

"First stop," Peter told him, turning to face Tony while still holding his hand, "we get hot chocolate."


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eh, this story sucks, but I already finished it so

"Can I get a coffee?" Tony asked they advanced on a cafe. 

"Nope," the boy decided after a pause. He pulled the man into the shop and, too eager to be encombered by his usual anxiety, ordered two hot chocolates.

Tony rolled his eyes at the holiday-dressed yet weary-looking barista before thanking her. They waited at the counter for their orders to be finished before, again, the two boys were on their way-- this time handling heaven. 

"It's good," Tony said blandly as he sipped at the drink. Good was an understatement. It'd been so long since he drank anything more flavorful than water or black coffee, the chocolate was so flavorful and sweet as it filled his mouth. 

"Mhm," Peter said, taking a long drink before coming away with a mustache made of whipped cream spread along his top lip, where his non-existent facial hair would have been growing. "It's delicious, I love hot chocolate."

"It's pretty good," Tony replied nonchalantly.

Peter rolled his chocolatey eyes and pulled him into a convenience store. He hopped to the back of the store and grabbed a stocking off the shelves. 

"What about you?" Tony asked as they turned from the display. 

"I've got one at home," he explained casually. "Turn around."

Tony obeyed, and Peter walked down the tiny store's aisles, selecting a random assortment of candies and trinkets along the shelves. 

He walked to the cashier and purchased all of his items, emptying them into the stocking before returning to Tony. 

"Okay, done here, Mr. Stark." 

Tony turned around, looking slightly upset. "Why didn't you let me pay for it, sweetheart?" 

Peter shrugged off the question easily. "Because it's Christmas. Now, c'mon. Next up, Central Park!" 

Tony pouted as they walked from the store. "Walk faster, Mr. Stark, or we'll miss our bus," Peter instructed. The boy wasn't exactly walking. Each step he took was sort of like a dance, light and airy. 

He guided the older down to the subway station and took a seat, watching the time on his phone pass by. "It's not too late to go back to Stark Industries and get my car, you know."

Peter shook his head no. "Walking is good exercise, and I ate a lot of cookies before I showed up to work." 

"Oh yeah." Tony pulled the bag of cookies out of his pockets and dropped two into the palm of his hand. He offered one to Peter as he took bite of his own of the cold pastry. Peter reluctantly took one, unable to say no to a sweet.

Tony's face lit up as he excitedly gobbled it up. "You're amazing, Peter. You're gonna be a real treat to a man one day." 

Peter laughed before his face grew serious. "What'd you just say, Mr. Stark?"

"Nothing," Tony said, suddenly feeling like he said something deathly wrong. He reviewed what he said and came to the conclusion it was creepy, but not the sort of creepy you clapped back on. 

Peter reproached him critically, shaking his head so his gentle curls shook against his face. "A man? Do you think I'm gay?" 

Oh. That's what he meant. "I..." He paused, thinking how to respond to that. "I could have sworn you mentioned it before."

"I am NOT gay. I do not like men." He sighed heavily. "I can't believe you would think I'm gay! I don't act gay, do I? I-I don't!"

He recoiled, upset painted on his face. At first, Tony's heart broke, but the more the boy spoke, the clearer he could see that Peter was just in denial. 

He readjusted, staring warmly at the boy. "There is absolutely nothing wrong with loving someone." 

Peter nodded, biting his lip. "I guess." 

"Do you love anyone?" Tony pressed, mustering his most trusting voice. It didn't really matter. Peter so clearly trusted him more than anyone else. 

"I love Aunt May," he began. He toed his boot into the concrete, face to the ground. "And I love my m-mom and dad... And my friends, too." He paused, smiling. "Ned and MJ." He met Tony's eye. "I love you."

Tony smiled beyond himself. 

"I love--"

"Oh my gosh! Mr. Stark, we're about to miss it." Peter grabbed the older man's elbow and they darted to the doors of the subway, just barely managing to slip through them before the doors slid shut silently. 

They looked at each other before they burst into fits of laughter; leaning into each other and grinning ear-to-ear. Peter leaned himself into Tony, clutching the older man's chest before he calmed down. "Jesus, you're muscular, Mr. Stark." 

They looked each other in the eyes and began a whole new round of laughter. 

Peter didn't move his hand until the subway rolled to their stop.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the nice comments, I was gonna give up on our favorite festive bby and his mansss

Peter smiled as he guided Tony into Central Park. The park was full of lights and decorations, children laughing and dancing around the wordlessly beautiful decorations. Suddenly, prickles of snow pirouetted from the glorious sky and down to their skin, finding stay and melting into the threads of their coats. 

Peter tilted his head back, extending his tongue into the cold air and catching the snowflakes. He giggled, fixing his posture. "C'mon, Mr. Stark! You gotta do it too!"

With a roll of his eyes, Tony copies the movement. Peter smiles softly at the older and moves to recline his back against him, shutting his eyes and breathing in the wintry moment. Tony slid his hand down to Peter's chest and stabilized him there.

"I love being with you," he whispered, turning to face Tony. He rested his head against the rock-like chest, buried underneath layers of protective fabric. 

"Yeah?" Tony murmured, stooping his head in order to look at the boy closer. Peter's lips relaxed and his eyes blinked slow. 

"Yeah," the brunette responded, unable to peel his eyes from the older man's mouth.

Tony's hand slid from the boy's back (where it had landed when Peter turned around) to his chin, gently cradling his jaw in his palm. He wasn't wearing gloves. His fingers were dry and frigid against the soft, smooth skin of the teenager's cheek. 

Suddenly, Peter shifted away from the intimate embrace, distancing himself from his mentor. "Um... Look at the tree," the brunette said, running a few yards to get a better look at the the brightly lit Christmas placed in the center of the park. 

Tony sighed, forced a smile to his lips, and replied with a falsely enthused: "wow, it's beautiful."

He'd seen the tree a thousand times before, being that he lived in New York. Sure, it had been goregous his first handful of times. Eventually, you begin to take the beauty and uniqueness of things for granted within extended stay. He hoped that would never be Peter. He hoped Peter would always see the beauty in the world, the goodness in it. He wondered how one tortured boy who'd experienced as much hardship as Peter had in his lifetime could still be an optimist. 

"Yeah," Peter agreed breathlessly. He smiled and looked at Tony sideways. "I love this time of year." 

"I can tell," the man countered. 

"I know. It just gives me that feeling. It's a special kind of happy you can only get now." He looked to the sky and smiled. "It reminds me so much of everyone I loved. I can remember my parents, handing me my gifts. I don't know if it's a real memory. I can't remember what I got, but I can remember the looks on their faces as they handed me them. And I can remember the wrapping paper." 

Tony nodded solemnly. He sighed, "that's a beautiful memory, Peter. Doesn't it hurt you, though?"

He nodded at the older. "A little. I don't know much about them. I've distanced myself from them, and that's what hurts the most nowadays. I want to know everything there is to know about them. I don't know how to go about asking Aunt May though, because I don't know if she's ready to tell me everything." His voice cracks as he continues, "I'm scared I'll lose her, too." 

Tony gathered the brunette in his arms and held him close, humming gently in his ears. Peter was crying quietly into the coarse fabric of the man's coat, letting the emotions roll over him in tides of pain. "Do you still miss your parents?"

Tony laughed and squeezed him. "Of course I do. You'll never stop missing them. You just need to stay strong and remember that they loved you, and they'd have stayed if they had a choice."

Peter nodded into Tony. "I feel so good with you." 

"Good? How?" Tony pressured with a laugh, ghosting a kiss over Peter's forehead.

"You're better than Christmas," he replied in a hushed whisper, soft into his shirt. He slid his hand down to Tony's hand and interlocked their fingers. "Let's go ice skating."


End file.
